PUZZLE

I’m in the middle of travel right now, hence the messy handwriting. That, and the fact that Eross is taking so much room on my disk I cannot use the writing stool properly that I have to resort to writing on my lap. Current location: Carnivale (I cannot find this location on the maps of the celestial timepiece.)
There’s almost too much to record right now, but one thing for sure is that we’ve taken a step deeper into our quest to find the members of La Busa Magica. Not too long ago, we discovered that Tim, one of the crew members, is currently housed and working at the Guild of Odds and ends. The fact that he doesn’t have a very good memory indicates that when the crew split, Tim must have either not had a relic or ended up losing his. We’ll need to investigate further.
A strange phenomenon has occurred in Charity. In correspondence with the upcoming Brightcomb festival, a khalashtar priestess of Sehanine has made sanctuary within the city grounds. Although for KU-RO and I this would be a normal occurrence in our world, it is a strong discrepancy for Charity, as indicated by Ever’s naivety about the Gods. I asked about the presence of the others, the Cadence said that she-

So after we kicked the giant’s ass, he was pretty cool. He collected a ton of corn (probably literally), and THEN WE GOTSHOT BY SOMEIDIOTWITH AN AUTOMATICCROSSBOW. If you are reading this, and you are from the future, and Eross the Mighty is long gone, there is really only one thing you must know about crossbows: no one could use them as well as Eross. When people try to be fancy and buy some shitty, crazy-dangerous crossbows, they shoot all of the good guys ‘accidentally’ with tranqs, and send them into some trippy dream sequence. Which, speaking of dreams, I had a pretty awesome one. EROSSESGALORE!!! There was also a big tree that was like everlasting or something. Anyway, the Erosses were awesome—we were shuffling towards the tree thing, and then I look up and I’m like, “Holy crap, who are these sexy men?!” That’s right, it was me—all me. Then they were like, “Dude, what’s on your arm?” And there was nothing on my arm, so I didn’t freak out. But then there was only one of me left when I looked up. For the first time I could feel my own presence; his beauty overtook me, as I’m sure it overtakes others when I’m around. He was marked, though, in his shoulder area. Kind of like the damn mark He-Who-Is-An-Asshole gave me, but not really at all. Then Eross 2 peaced out when I woke up from that crazy dream. So when I wake up, it turns out that we all had this dream. Everyone talked about theirs except for The Stranger, who looked sad for once. KURO made something up about the dreams, but was obviously totally wrong. Anyway shit happened, and we had to defend David from a HUGEMEGAGIANTTHATEVENDWARFEDDAVID. So everyone was doing a pretty good job. It goes without saying that I tactically waited in the shadows, sniping the giant to the ground. Kyu did some crazy shit with teleportation for once. FINALLY. Ever did his thing with nature and shit. I’m really starting to like this guy’s style. He’s always giving me chances to crap on the enemies. The Stranger and KURO were kicking ass and taking names. So, the usual party stuff. Eventually the foxes knocked the mega giant out with the cannons which I didn’t mention earlier, because I could have taken the mega giant by myself, but whatever. Also Kyu’s totally-cool, chick-magnet device, the Eye Face Monocle, was totally fine and awesome. But actually, the complete reverse of that entire sentence is true. That shit was dunzo. Then Ever poured a potion on it, AND IT SIZZLED. HAHAHAHA, THATWASHILARIOUS. It’s a blessing and a curse really. On one hand, we won’t have vital, game-changing enemy information anymore. On the other, we won’t have to be seen with Kyu with that stupid thing on his face anymore. Pretty much even in my opinion. We later found out that the mega giant is the giant’s mom. He was grounded, and he let us beat her up. ANDTHEYCALL ME A BADSON.

Twitchy, the fox with the repeating crossbows, shot the party with tranquilizer bolts, because he has a terrible trigger finger.

The Tree was described as: 1) always having stood at its present height, 2) having leaves that never wither and disappear before hitting the ground, and 3) the Tree is healthy and plentiful.

There were nine main branches, three of which pointed directly in Eross’ direction. The other six were similarly clustered in threes pointing left and right.

The Tree is very tall.

The rest of the party had similar dreams, KURO’s involved the gods dancing, Kyu’s involved scholars, Ever’s involved nothing, and we are unsure about the The Stranger’s. We believe it involved his grandfather.

The party was tasked by Giomustachio with keeping David’s mother at bay until the fox workers could get the cannons set up. We had to survive for 10 turns, while keeping David conscious.

Eross did not snipe the giant to the ground. He actually didn’t do very much damage at all.

It was mostly the rest of the party, especially Ever and Kyu, that did a lot of the work.

In which is recounted the events of third part of the first day comprising reaching the ODDS & ENDS GUILD, discovering the location of TIM, ascertaining the nature of certain celestial bodies, including the moons of this land, meeting HERR DOKTOR PROFESS

Indeed,
Soon after I completed
My previous journal entry,
I had a talk with DAVID,
Who I believe was entirely receptive
To my admonitions
About luring friends and strangers
To attack his MOTHER.

[Editor’s note: David responded only confusedly to KU-RO’s attempts. Ever also seemed confused.]

Soon afterwards,
We approached in the CITY of CHARITY,
And were able to get a good view
Of the architecture of its walls,
Which seem to be arranged
In a hexagonal formation around the CITY
There being six main walls.

At this time we observed
That the external walls
Made from smooth, well-crafted grey stone,
Did not seem to be used as defense
As much as structures
In which other structures reside.

In other words, the people of CHARITY
Seem to treat the walls
As others would treat cliffsides
Or caverns, or hills,
And they build commercial areas
Such as workshops
Or marketplaces
Above and inside the walls.

Indeed this reminds me of some places
Where ancient ruins are treated
In the same fashion
A military watch-tower repurposed
As an abode,
Or an ancient Dwarven fortress,
Perhaps more vilely,
As a den of dragons
Or Goblins, or Hoblins,
Or Kobolds,
(Such as offends MORADIN).

Though this sight seemed pleasing
Rather than at all offensive—
Such fine structures,
Of great handicraft,
Continue to be used rather than abandoned,
Even though their original purpose
Has long past.

I contemplate this fact for now,
Even though at the time,
Soon after looking at the walls,
I did not,
But rather continued to contemplate
The issue of the dreams,
That my comrades,
And even young EVER
Did experience
And the common symbolism of the tree.

I will return to this topic in due time,
As I have new thoughts and new information.

While in the wagon,
We, meaning KYU, THESTRANGER,EROSS, and the youth EVER,
Began to talk about the previously undeciphered
Symbols shown on the CELESTIALTIMEPIECE.

Ah, but wait—
I am forgetting an exchange I really should note,
As it pertains to one of the missions.

Around the time we saw the walls,
There was a halfling walking alongside the wagon,
Who introduced himself as TIM.

I immediately reminded KYU,
Who was still feeling downtrodden at the time
About the damage done to the SCOUTER
That this TIM,
Since the name is so very uncommon,
Might be the very same TIM
Who is a member of the crew of LA BUZZAMAGICA
and the companion of D.A.!

We questioned him about his time of arrival,
But quickly became confused ourselves,
Since he mentioned 21 months
Being equal to over a year!

It seems that the manner of timekeeping here,
Or perhaps simply the length it takes
For the SUN to return to a certain place in the sky
Is longer here!

The youth EVER,
Who has continued to accompany us,
Quickly informed us that the length of a year
In this land that contains CHARITY
Is exactly twenty months,
Each having twenty days.
The days, however,
Seem to have the same twenty four hours
That we have in our land.

How strange, indeed…
Praise to MORADIN for the wonders of all worlds!

But back to what I was dicussing before:
The symbols on the TIMEPIECE—
That appeared soon after we emerged
From the WINDOW OF CHARITY—
Were explained by EVER simply
As this land’s four moons
Coming to alignment in the sky
Over some large collection of stars
Arranged so that the dark spaces between them
Outline hexagons, like a honeycomb.

And indeed this formation is called
The BRIGHTCOMB
And it is in celebration of this alignment
That the upcoming BRIGHTCOMBFESTIVAL
Is to be celebrated.

The alignment is as such:
The paths of the four moons
Come parallel with the bright band of stars
Called the BRIGHTCOMB
And on a day called BRIGHTCOMBDAY
Are in perfect alignment on each side
Of the central hexagonal formation of stars.

I shall discuss the periods of these celestial bodies
At a later point in time.

In any case,
There is a legend that is as follows,
Drawn by the youth EVER
In the sand in the wagon:
A door opening in the hills,
One one side, a Fox,
Such as these Foxes that walk around CHARITY,
And on the other, a humanoid person.

The iconography that EVER reproduced
Indicated the humanoid was arriving,
And the Fox was greeting the humanoid.

Another detail was that the humanoid
Was even smaller than the Foxes,
Which seemed to surprise KYU.

At that moment I did not think much of it
Reasoning it to be part of the style of iconography.

We lingered long in the wagon,
Continually discussing these things,
But were soon met by GUILDMASTERGIOMUSTACHIO
Who came outside again
To make sure we were comfortable
And to urge us to come inside.

[Editor’s note: Giomustachio was mostly wondering why the five of them had remained, awkwardly, in the wagon, when everyone had gone inside.]

Inside the guild hall of the ODDS & ENDSGUILD
We sat in a smaller section by the bar
Seemingly meant for larger folk
Such as ourselves
Since the average height in CHARITY,
The land being dominated by Halflings and Foxes
Is quite a bit bit shorter.

In fact most of the members of the ODDS & ENDSGUILD
Seem to be Halflings and Foxes.

We had a lunch of fish sausage,
Which seems to be very popular
In the area;
I have never had it before,
But it was quite enjoyable.

EROSS seemed to be visiting the bathroom quite often
While we were eating.
He seemed to be very pleased
With something he noticed in the bathroom.

We made arrangements with GUILDMASTERGIOMUSTACHIO
To stay in the guild hall,
And when EVER went to fetch some beddings for our stay,
It afforded the four of us,
Meaning KYU, THESTRANGER, EROSS,
And I, KU-RO,
Invoker of the Holy NAME of MORADIN,
A chance to speculate about all that had transpired
Since our arrival.

However, we were soon interrupted
By the return of EVER.

[Editor’s note: KU-RO accidentally used Divine Call on the door as Ever arrived.]

KYU managed,
Or so it seemed at the time,
To conceal the presence of THEVAULT,
Which we had opened
In order to stow our belongings
Which was indeed part of our reason
For meeting without EVER.

Since it was still early,
We attempted to visit the goldsmithHERRDOKTORPROFESSORCHODDERTON,
Whom EVER and another guild member had recommended
As an appropriate person to fix THESCOUTER.

HERRDOKTORPROFESSORCHODDERTON,
It turns out, is an elegant Gentleman
With a large frame,
And a contemplative countenance.
I am still impressed with him,
As I was at the time.
He had the instant insight
That THESCOUTER is not much different
From a “thinking monacle”
As he put it.

HERRDOKTORPROFESSORCHODDERTON
However,
Urged us to return the next day
In order for him to continue
With THE SCOUTER’s repair.

When we returned to the ODDS & ENDSGUILD
Which was only a short walk away to begin with,GUILDMASTERGIOMUSTACHIO was outside,
Observing the sky, and in particular the moons
Which were now all visible above the walls.

Since we did have some time,
He suggested we see a nearby Fortune Teller
As a novelty, and also
He did mention that the fortune teller
Was a Priestess.

At the mention of a Priestess,
I deigned to go at once,
Since the only persons
Of a profession dedicated to the Divine
Have been SIREVERGREEN
And the WATCHMAN, though he never mentioned it—
Or did he? My memory of the recent Time Contraction
Is still quite hazy, I suddenly realize.

Though I do not know why.

In any case, ever our now-guide, EVER
Led us down to a quieter section of the CITY
And to a tent in which we were to meet
The Fortune Teller, a Priestess of SEHANINEMOONBOW!

The tent seemed well-traveled but dignified
From outside, in the alleyway, where we stood.

And as I expected, the inside was spacious,
The walls seeming made of stone,
Like a proper temple.

Yes, I recall that EVER himself had been surprised
At GUILDMASTER GIOMUSTACHIO’s mention of a Priestess,
And even more surprising on recollection
Was the good GUILDMASTER’s whispered musing to himself,
“What is a Priestess?”

I must tend to preparation of my Daily Spells now,
Which is what I must call it,
Since I no longer convene
In any manner with BLESSEDMORADIN
But through mysterous means.

In the next entry, I shall detail
This surely Fateful meeting
With the Priestess of LADYSEHANINE.

In which is recounted the second part of the events of the first complete day of our expedition out

In the NAME of BLESSEDMORADIN,
The Most Robust, the Most Artisanal,

I, KU-RO,
Invoker of the HOLYNAME of MORADIN,
Continue the tale of our journey:

After assisting DAVID with the picking of giant ears of corn,
We were shot,
Through an act of misunderstanding,
Though only with some form of tranquilizer,
By an individual named TWITCHY,
Who is of the Fox-Race,
The same as QUARTERMASTER,
And the mysterious craftsmen
Who aided us in the defense of the MIRROR
Against the forces of the GREYANDPINKBUTCHERS,
Whose names are PROCRUSTES and CANDY.

In any case,
Once we were hit with the tranquilizer,
Which TWITCHY shot from a repeating crossbow
Of notable speed,
All of us members of THEPARTY fell unconscious.

While unconscious,
I, KU-RO,
Did experience a vision
Which I currently believe
Was a transmisson from the GODS.

In this vision,
I saw an immense tree,
With nine main branches,
Each too tall for even I, KU-RO
To reach.

Around the tree, the GODS,
With hands joined in a circle around the trunk,
Danced joyously,
And I understood that around the tree,
The GODS had a truce,
And no conflict could take place there.

And waking from the dream,
Well-rested,
I was filled with a sense of harmony
With the world.

As I consulted with my companions,
It became clear that we each
Had similar dreams while unconscious.

Each of us dreamt of the immense tree
With nine branches,
But the additional details of the scene
Aside from the tree itself,
Differed between the lot of us.

I believe, however,
That most of us had essentially
The same dream
But with differing symbolism.

EROSS,
Instead of seeing the GODS,
Saw many versions of himself around the tree.
It is likely that,
Given his narcissism and cognitive challenges,
That he is unable to see the GODS
In any other form except his own.

KYU,
Saw scholars gathered around the tree,
Since he likely sees the GODS
As the patron and guardians
Of wisdom and knowledge.

The youth EVER,
Being too young to have meditated
On the nature of THEDIVINE
Did not see anything near the tree.

The exception, however,
Was THESTRANGER,
Who, through his scattered comments,
I discerned did have a dream of a tree,
If not the very same tree.

THESTRANGER, however,
Displayed signs of either terror or sorrow,
And in any case,
His dream had not been pleasant,
But had given him quite the fright.

He avoided questioning of the dream,
By KYU, his oldest acquaintance among us,
And I did decide that it might be prudent
To wait to discuss the details
Until such a time at whichTHESTRANGER might be more comfortable.

We kept watch the rest of the night,
And and as the collection was almost complete,GUILD-MASTERGIOMUSTACHIO,
Having arrived earlier,
Announced the arrival of an unwelcome guest,
And charged us to protect DAVID
Until preparations for the canons had completed.

Our opponent turned out to be another giant,
Even larger than DAVID,
Of a size I had previously thought impossible
In any terrestrial realm.

Our strategy for the battle that ensued
Consisted around delaying our new opponent
And also ensuring that DAVID,
The main target of the larger giant’s attacks
Remained conscious.

The details of this battle
Are too long to recount,
But, notably,
The Youth EVER,
Who seems to have an affinity
To natural forces,
And I, KU-RO,
Invoking the HOLYNAME of MORADIN,
Were able to keep the larger giant at bay.

EROSS persisted in firing his projectiles,
Even though they were not having any effect
Due to the giant’s thick, rock-like hide.

KYULATARI had a greater amount of success,
And when the opposing giant
Attempted to place KYU in its mouthKYU notably performed his first act
Of teleportation out of the giant’s mouth.

Indeed, it seems his countless hours of training
In the Cathedral during those now-hazy months
Seem to have borne fruit.

EROSS, to his credit
Maneuvered and thus allowed me
KU-RO, Invoker of the HOLYNAME of MORADIN,
To deliver punishment to the opposing giant.

The result was the giant was preoccupied
And then knocked unconscious
By the firing of the large cannons.

At this point, the convoy of the guild,
With the large corn in tow,
Was able to depart.

KYU and perhaps the entire PARTY
Did suffer an ill side-effect of this enounter:
At some point, which is not clear to me at this moment,
The Scouting Device that KYU wears over his eye,
In the fashion of a monacle,
Was damaged and is presently inoperable.

As a final note,
It seems that the opponent giant that we faced
Was none other than the mother of DAVID
Who attacked DAVID
For breaking some sort of embargo
On leaving the domicile
That is referred to as “Grounding”
In the local vernacular.

I must speak to DAVID on this topic presently,
For it is not pleasing to MORADIN
That a child disrespects his elders
Under most circumstances.

After that, I shall ponder the common symbolism
In the dreams we each had,
For I believe it to be a portent of sorts.

What to do...

I can’t believe this.
I don’t feel like talking about it either, so I might as well write about it.
The Scouter’s broken.
We were up against this giant, David’s mom or whatever, and when she reached for Eross when we stood on her eye, the gust swept it right off me.
And now it’s in pieces because

The writing stops here, dots of red liquid are found on the page. They look like the dried droplets of a potion of healing

Writing resumes after stains

METTHEREST OF THEGUILDKNOCKEDOUT BY TWITCHYTHATFOOLANDHISHORRIBLETRIGGERFINGERDREAMT OF A HUGETREEWOKE UPTALKEDWITHEVERYONEELSETHESTRANGERWASMOODYPEOPLEHADSIMILARDREAMSKNEWSOMETHINGWASBADNOWSCOUTER IS BROKEN
NO IDEAWHAT TO DOPACKED UP ANDLEFTCHASED BY DAVID’S MOMKNOCKEDHERDOWNGOTSWALLOWED BY THEMOMFOUGHT MY WAYOUTWITHTELEPORTATIONMAGICALMOSTBROKE MY KHOPESHPRIMAL IS FANTASTICLOSTTHESCOUTERTHESTRANGERWASDANCINGAMAZINGLYDIVINE IS ALSOFANTASTICEROSSHAD AN OFFDAYFOUNDTHESCOUTERSCOUTER’S BROKENTHEYPOURED A POTION ON IT.NEEDWAY TO FIX IT.

The handwriting on the parchment is aggressive both in nature and tone, as all words seem to have been written as if the pen was being held in a fist.

Details missing:
- Everyone had the same dream, but with variations. Eross saw multiple copies of himself, KU-RO saw the Gods “dancing”, Kyu saw scholars, and The Stranger did not reveal what his version of the dream was.
- The cannons brought by the guild were used as large blunderbusses to fight David’s mother, who screamed that David was grounded.
- Kyu has become comfortable again with teleportation magic, as well as invincibility magic.
- Blue smoke is rising out of the scouter.
- Eross discovers there is a tattoo on his shoulder. Kyu identifies the tattoo as a Kraatitian Army rank tattoo that is given to each soldier. He continues to ask Eross questions, trying to piece together whatever information Kyu receives from Eross’s memory.
- Kyu cannot contact DA from where they are.
- The celestial timepiece shows that 4 dots are converging. Ever seems to know what they are, but there has not been enough time for them to talk about it.

In which is recounted the events of first part of the first day comprising passing through the window, discovering a new city in a new land, with giant fauna

In the NAME of BLESSEDMORADIN,
The Most Staunch, the Most Hardy,

I, KU-RO,
Invoker of the HOLYNAME of MORADIN,
Recount the tale of my journeys:

We, the Party under contract with HOUSEEVERGREEN,
Have after Six Months of training and preparation,
Departed to unknown parts of the TOWER,
Which is the term for this Cosmos,
Unknown as it were even to BLESSEDMORADIN
and the other honourable GODS.

We have undertaken a mission twofold:

FIRST,
To uncover the whereabouts of the “HIDDENCUBE”,
Presumably an artifact sought by HOUSEEVERGREEN,
And spoken of in their treasured scroll,
Left to them by their founder.

And SECOND,
To erstwhile locate the missing members
Of the ship “LA BUZZAMAGICA”
Who are the companions
Of the one known to us as “D.A.”,
Who is the original owner of the many artifacts in our possession, including

THECELESTIALTIMEPIECE,THESUNRODTHATSHEDS NO LIGHTBUTREVEALSHIDDENMARKS,THEOPENING-PANEL OF A MAGICALVAULT,
and several other objects.

This is a record of our expedition,
Began on ___ day of ____ month of _____ year
according to the reckoning of the Temple of Moradin.

After departing SIRWOLFERS, SIRGUNTHER, SIRQUARTERMASTER,
and the rest of HOUSEEVERGREEN,
We ascended the stairs to GRANDCARDINALHALL,
Where we were advised by D.A.,
via the communication function of the Celestial Timepiece,
Held by KYULATARI,
That it was safe to proceed,
And that indeed that it would be most optimal to proceed expeditiously,
According to her RESEARCH.

From this point we did not stay in contact with D.A.,
And instead focused our efforts navigating the stairways,
Above Grand Cardinal Hall,
Insofar as it may qualify as “above” or “below”,
And within approximately half-an-hour we arrived,
And found ourselves facing another large window,
Similar in design to the windows of GRANDCARDINALHALL.

KYU determined,
Based on his knowledge of artwork,
That the depicted image in the window
Represented the virtue of Charity.

However the portal of this window seemed inactive,
And seeing no other further place to pass,
I, KU-RO, Invoker of the BLESSEDNAME of MORADIN,
Endeavored to ask the HAND OF FATE for advice.

While I performed the artisanal summoning ritual,KYU did attempt to employ a Knock spell,
Which resulted in a metal grate,
Seemingly of the type found only in this Tower,
With nearly unlimited hardness and durability,
To close off the stairway
Which had functioned as our entrance.

After a series of questions,
The HAND finally yielded a clue,
Allowing THESTRANGER to ascertain a method
of entering the window,
which was by approaching the window
while walking backwards.

Immediately we found ourselves
On the corresponding other side of the window,
In the cellar hewn into the rock,
That as we ascended,
Seemed part of a ruined watchtower,
Of fine, and ancient construction.

Leaving the watchtower’s base,
We found ourselves on a hill,
Overlooking a city on a large lake.

We hurried along the closest road to the city gates,
And were immediately approached by an individual,
Whose features we did not note clearly at the time,
But who in eagerness asked us, the Party,
To deliver a wagon,
Apparently full of bees,
To the “GUILD”,
And we were left to complete the task,
Without further reference.

We consulted nearby individuals,
To little avail,
Since, upon seeing the wagon, most averted their eyes,
Until we met a youth with the name of EVER.

With the assistance of EVER,
We navigated the city with the wagon,
Carrying one corner of the wagon,
As two diagonally opposed wheels were missing,
To the ODDSANDENDSGUILD.

At the GUILD a Goliath,GUILDMASTERGIOMUSTACIO,
Welcomed us, and received the BEES
in the wagon we had transported.

At this point, for reasons I, KU-RO,
Do not fully recall,
We were asked to assist in the gathering
Of “Giant’s Ears” at a place known as BIGFIELD.

Again, guided by the Youth, EVER
We made our way out of the city to the forest,
Which then gave way a place
Filled with gargantuan marigolds,
Spaced intentionally.

We spotted a colossal figure,
And prepared to eitherONE, engage in battle
Or,TWO, flee the scene.

It soon became apparent, however,
That the colossal figure,
Whom we would later come to know as DAVID,
Was under some sort of frenzied condition,
Brought on by “allergies”,
Causing him to simulate hostility.

At this point we changed our strategy,
in order to help this individual in need.

THESTRANGER,
While employing his technique for inventory readying,
Managed to bring the troubled individual to the ground.

EVER, the Youth,
Proceeded to immobilize the giant with a large mass of Vines,

I, KU-RO,
Prepared the use of Anti-Venom
To negate the effects of any toxins.

I was able to grab hold of the colossal individual,
Even as he began to shake off his immobilization.

KYU,
With his FLOATINGDISC,
Proceeded with EVER to deliver a further dose
of Anti Venom to the mouth of the colossal individual.

The final measure delivered by THESTRANGER,
Who flew and exploded some kind of bottled concoction,
Labeled “Nasal Spray”,
Which did finally return DAVID to a healthy state.

During this excellent teamwork, EROSS regrettably panicked,
The threat likely triggering traumatic emotions,
And he fired several crossbow bolts,
And placed himself into a position where he sustained damage,
Though fortunately no one was seriously injured.

Meeting with another member of the ODDSANDENDSGUILD,
We accompanied DAVID as he picked the Giant’s Ears,
Which were giant ears of corn.

At this point DAVID issued us a warning,
That it was important that we keep quiet,
Or “They will attack.”

At that point we did not understand his warning,
So what happened next was unexpected,
And thus shall be the subject of my next entry.

New People

Today I met some new people. They are very strange… they are not from Charity, but they also remember things. This has never happened before. The stupider one seems to be from Big City, but the smart one is from somewhere I don’t know of. Kratos? He has a really awesome flying machine! But I don’t think he’s been to the Casino so I don’t know where he could have gotten it. There are two others. One is strange, talking about someone I have never heard of who is apparently cold and would like us to be also. I don’t think I want to be cold, I like it warmer. The last jumps around a lot and maybe can teach me to juggle even better since he seems to know a lot!

They came to the guild delivering the bees. I thought they were the wandering people, the ones who lost their memories, because they didn’t know about the bees or the guild or much of anything else. Not even money. But when I spoke to them they seemed relatively normal.

Poor David got shot again, so when we all went to check on the men in the field he rambled over and started flailing at us. Two of the new people just kept whacking at him which was not very nice at all, but Kyu helped me try to lessen his reaction and I got to fly on his thing! I saw on there, he has many books. On war and things. So I’m not so sure about him anymore, we will see I guess.

In the end David was ok, since the jumping guy broke open his nasal spray. David is going to need to get another one I guess, I hope they aren’t expensive or anything. And now the bees are at the guild and we have lots and lots of corn and this is all very good. I’m afraid I will have to spend more time in Charity for a while though, away from home, because I need to keep an eye on these weird people. I don’t know where they came from or what they are here for, I hope they won’t cause any trouble…

Enthusement

(as The Stranger cannot Write, this entry has been dictated to a scribe, true to his words and prosody.)

We are Off once more!

I can hardly detain the Enthusement that wells within me. These six months past, waiting for the Grand Philharmonic to return to Playing-In-Time, have not been wasted. But- to leap into worlds unseen, into skies unsailed, into sands unstumbled, into leaves untwirled… the cravings are Insatiable.

We found the Window of Charity to be Unlit and in need of Power, which we alone could not Generate. Kyu used something- one of his many Magicks- called Knock, but The Tower did not care for visitors, and a grate sealed our stairy exit! In quick response, KU-RO prepared a delicious ritual and we once more asked the Hand of Fate where our answers Slumbered. After some Confusement, I was First-to-Enter- the Slide of Mimes gave way to Hand Springs, and Lo! I Passed through the Window. The others soon followed, I suspect, having mastered the same techniques through the Genius and Skill I respect in them, so greatly.

On the Other Side, we found ourselves within a Ruined Watchtower. We heard a rush of Water. We felt a Stiff Autumn Breeze and saw many a Spiny Tree beyond the thorns and bushes. The hill we were on was near a town, and, ah- I did not detain Myself well- I ran to the town ahead without heed of the Others!

Upon reaching the town, a fellow immediately asked us to bring a Wagon of Bees to the Guild. He paid us- though he needn’t have bothered, as we are wont to Aid and Do Good- but after he left, none would speak to us. There was no Gust in their faces as they hurried away, and were this a response to Performance, I would have been Devestated. FInally, a young man told us where the Guild was. He would even lead us there! Such a Caring Fellow. I wish to know him better.

But the Wagon! It stood upon Wheels Unbalanced and Missing. The only solution was to carry it to the Guild. It is lucky for that fellow that he spotted us, for we are full of Enthusement and Strength, and we happily carried out the task, wagon, and bees. I placed myself Beneath, Braced my shoulders against its underwagon, and sought to Lift it with a Deep Squat, with the others Lifting as they could. And Lo! Our combined Strength raised the wagon, and with the Guideication of the young man, we completed our Quest. The small task was Enjoyable, and ah- just as they say- the Bee’s Needs.

We met a Gentleman with a Fabulous Mustache. He thanked us for our Aid and gave us Drink. But the Guild was empty- the other Members were on their own Quest. And soon we were to join them, to bring back A Pair of Giant Ears.

The young man, named Ever, was able to lead us to Big Field, where Tall Flowers stood, ah- Tall. Kyu flew Above on his Disc, with Eross-In-Tow. They saw a Giant, but when they came down, Eross- ever the Prankster- pretended to fall and be Hurt by the Books. Perhaps he Pranked too loud, for he alerted a Giant! The Giant was sick with The Madness and charged towards us.

We knew what we must do- our only recourse was to Detain the Giant. At KU-RO and Kyu’s command, I dashed in, with my allies close behind me. I was First-to-Reach, and I knew to Perform the Dragon’s Tail- one of the Legendary Dances that Grandfather taught me. A foe of Any Size, he said, would Fall- and Lo! Fall he did!

The Giant Fell and, ah- I must say that I Fell in a way- I Fell to Dancehood once more. My arms and legs Spun and Twirled in manners they Had Not in months past. I gave in to my Heart, and Performed the most powerful of the Legendary Dances that I had yet mastered. It is because of this that I am spotted on what else perspired.

This is what I Know:

At two points during my Dancing, I found myself in transgression of a flask. The First-To-Find, I gave to Ever. The Second-To-Have, I gave to Eross. I do not remember what happened after.

At some time, KU-RO climbed the Giant as one tickles a mountainside. From my Studies, I believe his Skills to be Gifts from his god, Moradin, whom I remember being Of Mountain.

Our Hearts moved as One, and we were almost able to cure the Giant of The Madness. A Fox came Jumping towards us, and told us to get the Giant his Medication-In-Pocket. Eross- in True Form to his Genius- revealed a Large Object. I called to Kyu and Ever during their decrescendo, and with their Aid, I was able to Perform the Swift Flight and the Quicksilver Motion, to bring the Medication closer to the Giant’s Head.

Alas, I Performed with too much Vigour and Missed. But Lo! The Object became Cloudian and disparaged The Madness.

The Giant thanked us and Apologized, and we Learned that he had a thaumaturgy to Sleepytime Bolts. Our Quest continued, and we Learned it was not the Giant- named David- whose Ears we needed. Ah, but to be certain, they were. They were not Ears, but Ears. Large Ears, grown perhaps by David. He cut down A Pair, then Another, and Another, until our Pairs numbered Twelve- Twelvemore than we thought Needed. David insisted, for he had a Favour to ask of us.

Alright so we finally got our asses in gear. It was about time too, because I was starting to miss fighting stuff. So I’ll just start out at the important part. We went upstairs to the other place and the unfinished hall was there. Some window with people on it was there. Obviously another one of those portal things, but OF COURSE IT WASUNLIT. This shit can never be easy. So we dick around as usual for a while trying to figure out how to get through this portal. KURO busted out the oh-so-useful Truth Hand after faking us out with some “Cooking with KURO”-level shit. Kyu also used a spell that TRAPPED US INSIDE OF THEFREAKINGHALLWITH NO WAYOUTBUTTHROUGHTHEWINDOWTHAT DIDN’T WORK. So that sucked, but once the Hand of Answers was up and running, we asked some pretty good questions and figured out that we had to go into the window backwards. Easy enough. Once we got through, we found ourselves in some weird area with stairs. Once we got to the top, we figured out we were in the ruins of some kind of watchtower. The only way forward was to climb out into the brush. We came across a lake-stream and then a crazy-shaped town with walls. We get there and not two seconds pass when we’re spotted by a strange man in a big hurry. He gives us two small platinum bars which is great, except for the fact that he wanted us to move a CART OF BEES. KURO takes it upon himself to divulge all of our secrets to everyone he meets, so naturally he began to tell this guy everything that happened to us. Once again, I am left to lead the group with my cunningly sharp intellect. I smartly suggested we just leave with the platinum, but everyone was all over the cart already. So we had to drag the stupid cart, which was missing two wheels, to the place the guy wanted us to take it. KURO’s ‘ornament’ was up in my area the entire way. Not cool. When we finally arrived, the place turned out to be some kind of guild. A big guy with an incredible fake moustache was there to greet us. Oh and the kid that I didn’t mention earlier was there, and apparently knew the guy who runs the place that we had to bring the bees to. Then we had to go find Giant ears with that kid—the one that keeps calling me on my bullshit. Hurray. So we set off to find the Giant to cut his ears off, but before that we stumbled into a giant-ass field of big-ass flowers. Like huge, not just tall, but literally giant. Then there was this giant, WHOMADETHEGIANTFLOWERSLOOKPUNY, that looked like he was visited by Puff the Magic Dragon. This guy was out of it. And of course he would be pissed off when we got there. So without hesitation we start fighting him. With a few well-placed shots, I manage to bring him to the ground. Also The Stranger might have had a role in that too. While everyone’s messing around, I shoot him up and really get him bloodied. All the while I take absolutely no damage because I’m so skillful and adept. That kid that I don’t very much like was pretty useful in combat. I seemed to always catch the Giant by surprise, so I was really getting some great shots in. Then everyone in the party decided to throw sanity out the window and race towards the Giant’s mouth for some reason. Except The Stranger, he danced the ENTIRE time. KURO, the ever-wise, sprinted up the guy’s arm, while Kyu and Ever (that kid) flew around on Tender’s Floating Saucer with some vial or potion. Anyway, long story short, I save the day and the Giant is back to normal. He picked us up and took us for a ride, along with a random fox-person that came out of nowhere. Turns out the Giant ears were not actually Giant’s ears, but giant ears of corn. Bees and giant corn. Solid day.

Missing details:

Kyu tried casting Knock, but instead of opening a new path for the party, it locked the staircase that leads down to the main tower.

Everyone in Charity seems to be shorter than average height from the party’s perspective.

They are also very well dressed, which stood out to the party.

Ever is shorter than the party, but actually not the youngest. Kyu is still the youngest.

KURO counted the bees…

The Giant, who the party later found out is called David, stood 30 stories tall.

The encounter was ended when The Stranger, with the help of Kyu’s disk, exploded the nasal spray and calmed the Giant.

Charity and Giant Ears

We have found a whole new part of the tower. When we arrived at the top of a new stairwell, the connecting space was reminiscent of the Grand Cardinal Hall’s previous state: still and somber. There was only one window visible to us this time, one stained with a visual of the virtue “Charity”. It was fitting, I must add, now that we are through the window. The thing about the window is that it was very dim, hard to pass through. I tried casting the Knock ritual, but the result was the closed staircase behind us with a plate that once closed off the Warlord room. Hand of Fate from KU-RO was… useful? The answers to the questions were somewhat helpful, in a sense that it did reveal we had to pass backwards through the window to get to the other side. What made me more curious was the ritual process. It seemed as though KU-RO was crafting something edible. Was he baking?

My companions and I faced the window again after passing through the other side. Not only was the window reversed, as though we were looking from the inside, the window was also oriented sideways. Other than the augmentation of the window, the room around us was bare like the room in the tower. We took the stairway present upwards and emerged into the ruins of a watch tower. I suspect that the tower’s destruction was not simply by nature, as the missing walls and roof are more likely to be the result of some sort of powerful force. Whether physical or magical, that force must have acted long ago, enough for overgrowth of plants and flora to consume the remnants of the fallen structure.

The running water that we first heard upon our arrival on this side of the window was no mystery after we emerged from the forest. The Autumn breeze, the grass on the mountain side, and the shining sun- all three complimented the sight of river, which was the source of the natural sound. Angel, that moment, for all of us, had been the first encounter with an environment resembling the outside world. The view was breathtaking, but it was also a cruel reminder of what we have been separated from after being trapped in this tower.

In the distance was a town, for which The Stranger immediately headed for. He moved with such a force (perhaps as if drawn to it) it was difficult to keep up with him even on my disk. Actually, Eross, who clung to the disk edge, was clearly the reason I trudged far behind. The town was lively when we arrived. It was almost your regular city, but- everyone was so finely dressed. Not that I had much time to look, for we were immediately called upon some stranger who asked for us to deliver “a cart to the guild”.
Guilds? Carts? I didn’t quite understand and the time, and even with the information I have now…
I still don’t.

The cart was full of bees. Yes, bees. Everyone with whom we tried to make conversation were probably in their right minds when they immediately backed out after discovering that we were then in possession a cart full of bees. Finally someone pointed us in the right direction. At first glance, it looked like someone who couldn’t be older than I was- about the same height if not shorter. He wasn’t rowdy or energetic like a regular city boy though but rather brief and otherwise taciturn. Straightforward is another good choice of words- like you, Angel, when you often have something to say about how much time I spend indoors. But he’s much more brief. He led us to the guild where we needed to go, one of “Odds and Ends”. After struggling to get the cart to the loading bay (the cart was missing a wheel from both the front and the back), we were greeted by one of the guild members. I’m still uncertain as to why, but the goliath we met ports around a fake mustache. It’s clearly fake, but it is better groomed than that of The Stranger’s (I find myself surprised to write this, actually. No one wears facial hair any better than he or my grandfather, whom you’ve met before I’m sure). Soon after, KU-RO conducts some sort of counting role call for the bees, a phenomenon I’m not shocked by in the slightest and we are invited inside for a drink. Eross seemed to have remembered how awful an idea it was to give ale to the follower of Moradin and insists on giving it to him when offered. Fortunately the goliath thought otherwise and gave us all, including the brain damaged companion, a variety of other beverages.

Not much after we have finally taken in our surroundings, the goliath suggests that we go look for the other guild members who were out gathering “giant ears”. Quite the task, I thought immediately, gathering the ears of giants. Difficult, let alone dangerous! But might as well, right? The boy who brought us to the guild led us away from it again and towards the Big Field where everything was truly “big”. Enormous flora populated in the Field. A normal marigold grows no taller than the lower part of your calf, but these, Angel, I estimate to be as tall as a two-story house on average. I, curious, rose up on the disk to get a better look at the flowers. Eross, stupid, hitched alongside the disk with the neck of his crossbow, his weight offsetting the balance of the entire setup. It was difficult to control my descent, and by no surprise, I crashed. My books fell on to the ground and apparently Eross’ groin, as he emitted the highest pitch I have ever heard from a human being. Served him right for the terrible idea of hanging on the side of the disk. But it was likely the reason why a giant, not so far away, began to charge towards us.

And if the marigolds were not large enough, the giant towered over us, about 30-stories tall. The giant began his rampage towards us, crushing marigolds and ginormous flora that got in his way. Each foot step demolished a plants the size of the largest oak trees around the Kraatitian forests, and he was coming straight for us five. Going against common sense (a recurring theme, if you haven’t noticed), we engaged the giant hitting him with all that we had. The scouter indicated he was under an illness of I-don’t-know-what, made apparent by the red eyes and the foam gathering near his mouth. Somehow The Stranger was able to trip the giant and cause him to fall. We tried to restrain him, which was an impressive effort done by the boy named Ever and KU-RO. Ever suggested, as he raised the Earth and flora around us (impressively), that we give him something for his illness (which we later found was allergies to the sleepy-time bolts that Twitchy fired at the poor giant). KU-RO gave Ever a bottle of anti-venom, and then proceeded to climb the arm of the giant faster than I could even fly the Tenser’s floating disk with Ever and I on it. As KU-RO sling-shotted us upwards with his radiant powers, Eross, I saw, was coming face to face with a fox covered in the giant’s mucus, whom he probably tried to ignore. Ever and I were able to deliver the anti-venom while Eross cut open the pocket of the giant as suggested by the fox. Out fell an another enormous object: this time a nasal spray the size of another house. I rammed The Stranger into the bottle as he wished, and sent him flying into the air. His spectacular grace ended short as he missed the giant’s nose, fell to the ground, and exploded the nasal spray, sending wave after wave of the pungent liquid towards the rest of us. But The Stranger managed to stop the giant’s rage in the end.

There was barely any time for an introduction. The Giant, named David, apologized and quickly explained his situation. He went back to working, gathering these large stalks of corn- “giant ears”. But while the fox man insisted that we needed only two of them, David collected about two dozen total. And then he mentioned the incoming attack.